Hmm...I guess this is my fifth entry into Friday Flash. Looks like we're back to silly, where I think I feel most at home.

Enjoy!

---

Lindsey sighed a bit as she opened the door to the studio. Most everyone had already cleared out their stuff for the year. Exams were pretty much over and there were just a few stragglers left hanging around campus. Her dorm was a ghost town.

She dumped her bag on her work bench, then got a lump of clay from the cupboard and carried it back to her table. The next step was to alternate between pouring water over it and kneading it to make it pliable. She felt, though, like the whole thing was a bit of a wasted effort. All through the last term, prepping and kneading clay was her
stress release. After exams and bad dates she would come back here and pound the clay with her fist. Her piece in the end of term art show was titled, "Two-For-One Coupons At Burger King Does Not A Date Make". But now that the term was over and she'd be starting an internship in another week, stress was replaced with a vague boredom. Her heart just wasn't in it.

A half hour later, Lindsey was nearly done roughing in the face when her lump of clay began talking to her.

"My lips are too thin."

Lindsey dropped her knife.

"What?"

"They're too thin. I practically don't have any. No one trusts someone with thin lips. I want fuller lips."

"So, what, you're saying Angelina Jolie is trustworthy because of her lips?"

If the bust could roll his eyes, he would have. "I'm not saying it's the only basis for trust but I just don't want to start out already at a disadvantage."

She pushed away from her table, glaring, her chair rolling back.

"I don't think I'm being unreasonable here."

Lindsey picked up her knife and and said, "You're just a stupid bust. In fact, you're a bust of a TA who always marked me harshly. My plan was to fire you, then take you up to the roof and toss you off it and watch you smash to bits in the parking lot."

"You can't do that to art!"

"Can we really call you art, with thin lips like that?"

The bust sputtered and little bits of clay landed on the table. Lindsey smirked and folded her arms.

"Can you at least do something about my hair? This is practically a pompadour. A pompadour!"

Lindsey swiped the knife across the bust, erasing his mouth.

"There. Now if you're lucky, I'll give you a mouth again when I'm finished. But I don't want to hear any screaming when I put you in the oven."

It suddenly seemed very quiet in the studio so she hummed while she worked.

14 responses to "The Bust "

Val wrote: Friday, 11 Sep 2009 14:49 AHAHA LOOK I'M COMMENTING I like it. :) (Although it was a bit weird when I realized the bust was a guy. I just assumed it was a girl for some reason.)

Laura Eno wrote: Friday, 11 Sep 2009 15:13 Oh, my. He's going to scream as she walks him towards the oven. Count on it...unless he never gets his mouth back. I love it!

2mara wrote: Friday, 11 Sep 2009 18:04 HA!I laughed... out loud. What's wrong with Burger King? Two-for-one coupons are romantic... ~2

chris chartrand wrote: Friday, 11 Sep 2009 18:11 Great line: "Can we really call you art, with thin lips like that?" A very funny piece. ~Chris

Debs wrote: Friday, 11 Sep 2009 18:23 *grins* That was fun, Dana! :D

CJ (hojpoj) wrote: Friday, 11 Sep 2009 18:29 This is a very cool story, and what an excellent way to vent! Amusing to think of the bust sputtering bits of clay - I like that.

Kylie wrote: Friday, 11 Sep 2009 18:41 Hahaha, I love how she just goes with it - is talking art normal for her?

PJ @doublelattemama wrote: Friday, 11 Sep 2009 21:10 I love the sputtering also! I thought she dropped the knife because she was so shocked, but then she didn't seem shocked (as kylie wrote) - did she drop it because she was angry at the bust? This was a very funny piece ... i don't think he's getting his mouth back and i think he's going off the roof ...!

Eric J. Krause wrote: Saturday, 12 Sep 2009 00:56 Nice story! I can't imagine him not screaming if put into the oven, so no mouth is probably best. Talk about flame broiled, eh?

Stephen wrote: Saturday, 12 Sep 2009 11:24 Great story. I was laughing by the end.

netta wrote: Monday, 14 Sep 2009 14:05 I agree -- she dropped the knife but then took the talking bust so matter-of-fact. Had this happened to her before? The Angelina Jolie line is hysterical. Very fun read!

J. M. Strother wrote: Tuesday, 15 Sep 2009 18:00 Oh, my. I think Lindsey has had a very stressful semester indeed. ;) I loved it. Pure whimsy, and great fun. Thanks for the laugh. ~jon

danpowell wrote: Thursday, 17 Sep 2009 14:57 Great fun piece. Made me laugh more than once. I like when you write silly. Great stuff.

Kristjana wrote: Thursday, 17 Sep 2009 20:46 I liked this. I like the idea of talking to your own artwork :-) I assumed that the head was a girl too.. maybe because of the Angelina Jolie comment (which I really liked)& women typically seem to be concerned with wanting fuller lips?

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